Fourth Uncle in the Mountain

"A magical book, literally and figuratively, the autobiography of a 'monk' in the tradition of Buu Son Ky Huong, a millenarian folk-Buddhist-Daoist tradition from Southwest Vietnam. Spanning decades of what we in America call the 'Vietnam War,' the memoir tells a rich, first-person tale of a vanishing lifeway in a vanishing culture . . . A pleasure to read, the book brings back a culture now distant in time, as well as space, with both specificity and sensuality. Vietnamese American readers may be particularly moved and enriched by the book's evocation of their historical and cultural legacy. The accessible style makes the book appropriate for undergraduate as well as graduate courses. It would fit naturally in courses on indigenous religions and on religion and healing. In Buddhist studies, it would be valuable in courses on Buddhism in practice as well as, of course, Buddhism and healing. Additionally, I can imagine excerpting chapters as bracing additions and antidotes to the usual fare in Buddhist survey courses."—Franz Metcalf, Journal of Global Buddhism

"An amazing, wonderful, and absolutely unique contribution to our knowledge of modern Vietnamese culture."—Keith W. Taylor, Chair, Department of Asian Studies, Cornell University

"This is a magical, mesmerizing story; a complicated tale of Vietnam's anguished history, of healing and faith, and of a young boy's miraculous coming of age."—Ken Burns, Director of Jazz and The Civil War

"It is important for every student and graduate of acupuncture schools everywhere to understand the true meaning and traditional genesis of this medicine as they might have learned it as an apprentice . . . This is a necessary journey each of us can take thanks to Dr. Van Nguyen and Margie Pivar in Fourth Uncle in the Mountain."—Leon Hammer, MD, renowned doctor of Oriental Medicine, President of Dragon Rises College of Oriental Medicine

"A great interpreter—that is, an intelligent and generous one—is rare. Just as rare as understanding between our distant worlds . . . Fourth Uncle reads in the direct and confident phrasing and tone true to a "barefoot doctor." That is to say, there is no National-Geographic-like emotional distancing ("these noble, if quaint, peoples believe that"). There are no well-meaning interpreter's estimates of what hip American readers are likely to understand. Fourth Uncle in the Mountain is a great story about two simply good men. It is told simply, but simplicity should never be mistaken for a lack of emotional complexity, intellectual refinement, or overwhelming humanity."—The Asian Reporter

"[A] charming book . . . the volume contains a wealth of information about Vietnamese history and culture . . . an adventure book strung through with passages on selflessness and mindfulness, this volume is an excellent choice for readers interested in Vietnam and Buddhism."—Publishers Weekly